Used car prices jump ahead of optimism for the spring selling season

DETROIT – A closely watched measure of used-vehicle pricing jumped last month as dealers rushed to build up inventories amid expectations of a strong spring selling season.

The Mannheim Used Car Value Index — which tracks the prices of used cars sold at U.S. wholesale auctions — rose 4% in February from a year earlier, to a level of 212.3, Cox Automotive reported Friday. This represents an increase of 0.8% from January and represents the highest level for the index since September 2023.

“Since the start of 2026, we have seen mostly strong demand in Mannheim with high sales conversion rates indicating merchants are willing to buy,” said Jeremy Robb, chief economist at Cox. “As we progressed through February, we saw prices moving higher than usual, especially in the latter half of the month.”

Robb said buying optimism was driven by expected higher tax revenues for US consumers, offsetting broader economic and geopolitical concerns. But he added that the war in Iran poses risks to the economy and may “weaken consumer appetite in the short term.”

“This may slow the pace of construction we are seeing on the back of tax refund season, especially with gas prices rising. Overall, the impact may be more severe early in the month, with demand increasing as we move through March,” Robb said.

Used car prices remain high compared to historical levels but are far from record levels during the coronavirus pandemic, when resilient demand and low inventories inflated prices. Retail prices to consumers traditionally follow changes in wholesale prices.

The average listing price for a used car in January was $25,533. That compares to more than $28,000 in 2022, according to Cox.

At the start of the year, Cox said it expected wholesale prices on the Mannheim Used Car Value Index to end this year 2% higher than in December 2025.